Graeme Smith warns Panesar of racist abuse

[Dravid]

There should be a law that if they commit something like this, they should be put in jail.

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

There should be a law that if they commit something like this, they should be put in jail.

No there shouldn't.

They should be kicked out of the ground, though.

 

[Dravid]

Kicking out of the ground hasn't helped a lot sending a message to other people because it keeps on happening. Sending them to jail might help spread the message to not abuse players.

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

Kicking out of the ground hasn't helped a lot sending a message to other people because it keeps on happening. Sending them to jail might help spread the message to not abuse players.

It's also an absurd overreaction. You can't jail people for insulting cricket players ffs. Maybe if they took it totally over the top, threw things, assaulted security etc, but you can't put a guy in jail for calling someone a "stupid Indian" or "kaffir" or wearing blackface.

Besides, it's not even up to CA or the grounds or whatever if someone goes to jail or not. You have to charge someone with a crime to jail them, which means the police and courts would have to be involved, and I daresay there's more pressing criminal issues around.

 

[Dravid]

It's also an absurd overreaction. You can't jail people for insulting cricket players ffs. Maybe if they took it totally over the top, threw things, assaulted security etc, but you can't put a guy in jail for calling someone a "stupid Indian" or "kaffir" or wearing blackface.

Besides, it's not even up to CA or the grounds or whatever if someone goes to jail or not. You have to charge someone with a crime to jail them, which means the police and courts would have to be involved, and I daresay there's more pressing criminal issues around.

Okay then how about a fine?

 

[pasag]

Why stop at jail though? Firing squad I say!

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

Okay then how about a fine?

A fine might work out. Certainly you can already be fined for "rude and unruly behaviour" etc at the cricket, and so if someone was a serious disruption to play they could certainly be ejected and fined a moderate amount. I'd hope application of such punishments would be cautious though. I'm not sure I'd be comfortable with someone being fined for shouting "no ball" or anything like that.

Having said that, the main advantage of ejection from the ground is that it is entirely up to the ground staff who they allow to remain there. Any other punishments like fines and criminal charges and so on aren't entirely controllable from CA's perspective.

 

[Langeveldt]

if i was to racially abuse a guy in the street, would I get sent to jail?

I think racism would be stamped out fairly quickly if you banned alcohol, and then banned spectators from the ground.. I think one Ashes test in front of an empty MCG would be enough to make these eejits see sense and I don't think it would happen after that..

 

[Johnners]

Banning alcohol would be a start. The question must be asked though, would the crowd numbers be affected if an achohol ban was implemented??

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

if i was to racially abuse a guy in the street, would I get sent to jail?

No. I'm sure there are certain situations in which you could theoretically abuse someone verbally and be charged with something that carries potential prison time, but in reality you'd never go to jail for something like that under any circumstances. Even if you attack someone physically on the street, unless you do serious damage to them, use a weapon or have a prior record you'll usually get a suspended sentence or something if they press charges. Racial abuse really doesn't register, especially stuff like "stupid Indian".

I think racism would be stamped out fairly quickly if you banned alcohol, and then banned spectators from the ground.. I think one Ashes test in front of an empty MCG would be enough to make these eejits see sense and I don't think it would happen after that..

Why ruin it for everyone because of a few people's behaviour? The financial losses and so on from such moves for CA and the grounds wouldn't really be worthwhile unless racial abuse became a massive epidemic that ruined every tour. I think a hardline stance, ejection from the grounds for offenders and threats of fines and so on should be sufficient to curb it, though there will probably always be a few idiots.

 

[Dravid]

Banning alcohol would be a start. The question must be asked though, would the crowd numbers be affected if an achohol ban was implemented??

No, don't you know how many people missed out on the tickets... I'm sure more than half of them don't drink...or atleast at games.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

Yeah I drink like Fuller's hobo uncle, but don't drink much at the cricket.

 

[Matt79]

IT would decimate one-dayers, at least temporarily. Tests it would hurt, but not nearly as much.

Remember, people thought the world was ending when they introduced the "24 tinnies in your esky maximum" rule.

 

[pasag]

Banning alcohol would be a start. The question must be asked though, would the crowd numbers be affected if an achohol ban was implemented??

Not the worst idea ever, but I'm not sure that 90000 people should miss out on the opportunity to have a beer because of a couple of tossers. But hey, if it got the problem to stop, I wouldn't mind forgoing my overpriced Light Ice.

 

[pasag]

No, don't you know how many people missed out on the tickets... I'm sure more than half of them don't drink...or atleast at games.

No, normal test match games in Melbourne don't get sold out. Besides the Ashes and Boxing Day tests.

 

[a10khan]

Thing is this keeps happening again and again. I know these are just some sections of the crowd but this wouldn't happen in any other cricketing nation in the world. Pretty poor stuff..

 

[Pedro Delgado]

Thing is this keeps happening again and again. I know these are just some sections of the crowd but this wouldn't happen in any other cricketing nation in the world. Pretty poor stuff..

It was still happening in the Republic of Yorkshire until quite recently, but when they rebuilt the Western Terrace it all seemed to change, thankfully.

 

[Dick Rockett]

I think racism would be stamped out fairly quickly if you banned alcohol

Come on man, you're smarter than that. Do we really have to resort to the "ban it" option every time we face a problem?

In my experience here in NZ, when a drunk does something stupid they are generally dobbed in by the rest of the crowd. I remember attending the NZ - England ODI at the Cake Tin a few years ago, and someone lobbed a full bottle of water at Owais Shah. Practically everyone stood up and pointed, shouting "it was him", so the police knew exactly who to throw out. I imagine it would be the same with racist comments, and the reaction would probably be similar throughout the cricketing world.

 

[silentstriker]

Come on man, you're smarter than that. Do we really have to resort to the "ban it" option every time we face a problem?

In my experience here in NZ, when a drunk does something stupid they are generally dobbed in by the rest of the crowd. I remember attending the NZ - England ODI at the Cake Tin a few years ago, and someone lobbed a full bottle of water at Owais Shah. Practically everyone stood up and pointed, shouting "it was him", so the police knew exactly who to throw out. I imagine it would be the same with racist comments, and the reaction would probably be similar throughout the cricketing world.

But it isn't. Thats the problem.

 

[Dick Rockett]

But it isn't. Thats the problem.

If you're referring to Australia, I'd say it's been blown out of proportion. There'll always be idiots, it's impossible to eradicate them.